1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to table saw accessories and, more particularly, to accessories which may be mounted directly to the saw table to guide stock across the saw blade.
2. Prior Art
A table saw typically consists of a motor-driven circular saw blade centrally mounted beneath a horizontal, substantially flat saw table having a blade slot through which the saw blade protrudes. A groove is formed in the surface of the saw table on either side of the saw blade opening, oriented parallel to the saw blade and blade slot and extending the length of the saw table. The grooves are sized to receive table saw accessories such as a miter gauge, which is used for cross cutting and mitering operations.
The table saw also includes an accessory known as a rip fence. A rip fence is an elongated bar which is oriented parallel to the saw blade and is adjustably attached to the saw table by means such as clamps which engage opposing edges of the saw table. A rip fence is used for ripping and dadoing or as a guide, stop, support or jig for other operations.
To perform a ripping operation, which is the sawing of a length of stock, usually in a longitudinal direction with the grain of the wood, a featherboard is often used in combination with the rip fence. A featherboard typically is made of wood and consists of a body having an elongate shape and a plurality of thin, flexible fingers extending outwardly from the body.
The featherboard is positioned on the saw table adjacent the saw blade and opposite the rip fence, and is secured to the saw table by C-clamps or other types of clamping devices.
To use such a featherboard, it is first positioned on the saw table such that its fingers extend toward the saw blade and terminate a distance from the rip fence slightly less than the width of the stock to be cut. The featherboard is then clamped to the table by C-clamps and the saw motor activated. As the stock is pushed toward the blade of the saw by the operator, the stock passes between the featherboard and the rip fence, bending the fingers of the featherboard slightly.
The inherent resiliency of the fingers push the stock toward the rip fence, thereby holding the stock against the rip fence and preventing it from drifting away from the fence during the cutting operation. By holding the stock firmly against the rip fence as the stock passes across the saw blade, a straight cut will be achieved, and the danger of the stock becoming skewed relative to the saw blade is greatly reduced.
A disadvantage with featherboards of that type is that, once clamped to the saw table, the featherboards cannot be adjusted or displaced. A second disadvantage is that the need for utilizing C-clamps to hold the featherboard in place on the saw table increases the total expense of the featherboard and limits the applicability of the featherboard to saw tables shaped and sized such that the C-clamps are capable of reaching and clamping a featherboard positioned adjacent a blade slot which is centrally located in the saw table.
Accordingly, there is a need for a featherboard which mounts easily and quickly to the surface of a saw table and which does not require C-clamps or additional mounting devices which add to the overall expense of the featherboard. Furthermore, there is a need for a featherboard which does not require a clamping device which must extend over the ends of the saw table.